List of Prednisone side effects

[Alysia]

[Alysia]

[khaisley]

How long does it take to start feeling some improvement with Pred? My hubby was started on 20 MG of Pred on January 10, 2014 (GP prescribed due to the rapid onset of joint pain). On January 14 the Rheumy increased him to 60MG, he has been on this higer dose for 5 days, she we be seeing any changes yet? Coughing has actually increased again, joint pain not as intense, but still there and required some pain meds, yesterday he started showing some eye involement (watery eyes) and he is rubbing them alot, and today he has complained of some pain in his chest when he breathes deep. I try not to be annoying and constantly ask him but I'm very concerned and he is still holding back admitting something is wrong until he has proof and official diagnosis. It so frustrating with a stubborn man!

[Wegetarian]

Well with me it was a matter of hours once I was on 60mg. With 20mg I didn't notice anything, but 60 started clearing up my nose a few hours after I took the pill. Before that I hadn't been able to breath through my nose for over a week.

[brettgrant99]

I was diagnosed December 17, 2013. They put me on 80 mg Prednisone, 40 in the morning and 40 in the evening. I was feeling better the next day. I also stopped sleeping the next day. The acne started up about 3 days later. I went off of all my other medications (pain and asthma and allergy). I just dropped down to 60 mg and now I get about 5 hours of sleep instead of 4. I just started Rituxan last Friday. On rare occasions, I would have issues with deep breathing, but they were always short lived.

I understand the concern with your significant other, my wife is the similar. A lot of the time I just don't want to talk about it. There isn't anything instantly that I can do about it. What are my options? Go to the ER? If "I" don't feel that it is very serious talking about it doesn't usually help. As I grow more concerned, I like to talk about it with my wife. You might need to vent more here or with friends if you feel a need to discuss it.

I don't know if you are religious or not, but I am and sometimes I get the feeling that this is just one giant lesson in patience from God. I've really had to dial up being patient. My wife has also mentioned being patient is really hard lately.

Good Luck.

[khaisley]

We are hoping to get final answers early this week. I have had great support from people here, so helpful and encouraging! I guess he has eventually told me when he needs to be seen, so I'll just keep being available and when he feels its enough..then we will go. He has been asking more questions lately and I know its somethign he has to come to terms with on his own. I'm just so scared the longer it takes to officially diagnose, the more damage is done. We really have not seen benefit from the Pred. I wonder if him lacking a spleen could be why the Pred isn't working? I need answers and I can't find information anywhere on someone that has WG and no spleen. We do have a lot of people praying for us and I know that God will carry us through this valley!

[annekat]

Pred alone cannot be expected to clear up Wegs symptoms, if that is what he has and is in the acute early stages of a flare. Everyone is different and pred can really do a lot fast for some of us. But if we have Wegs, we need to get on an immunosuppressant along with the pred. So it is imperative that he get a diagnosis soon and begin real treatment if he indeed has Wegs. If he doesn't, or the dx is inconclusive, then I am at a loss as to what to say. I don't hope he has Wegs, but if he does, I hope you find out soon. That alone could be a big weight off your shoulders, just to know what you are dealing with.

[khaisley]

From everything I am reading, and for the Rheumy to say she is very confident (which is very unusual for this Rheumy to say she is very confident without results) that its WG. I agree, I hope it isn't...but he has most of the symptoms. He may have had this for several years as we look back at things. This flare up began in October. He has been to multiple specialists and the have tried many things. It was on January 10 we went to his GP because of the rapid onset of severe pain. So since then he has seen the Rheumy, ENT. Things are not getting better and more symptoms just keep surfacing. Doing my best to stay on top of it to get his to the Cleveland Clinic. Thanks for your input!

[annekat]

I think some people are started on standard WG treatment even without an official dx; if that clears it up, it may sort of confirm the suspected disease. I also had the watery eyes, joint pain, and mainly upper airway involvement, along with ear and hearing issues. I did start coughing a lot more and got chest pain and breathing problems as it moved into my lungs. Eventually, night sweats, moderate fever, and coughing up bits of blood, and a lot of tightness and redness around my eyes and face, and headaches. Extreme fatigue. Developed saddle nose and got positive dx from nasal biopsy. Unfortunately, sometime things have to get worse before a dx can be obtained.

[Il_Randyb]

I was diagnosed in March of last year. I was started on 80Mg of prednisone and that continued for a couple months, then down to 40, then 20, then 10 then 5 and now off for a couple weeks. All in all I was on it March - January. The side affects are pretty wicked for me, sure I got the Moon face and the bloated belly, as well as the easy bruising, those are now mostly all gone. THat's the good news. THe bad news is it severely tapped my muscles and I - a person that prided himself on his physical shape and stamina (interval training and yoga prior to diagnosis) now have problems getting out of a chair or walking up stairs because my muscles are so weak. I also have developed a huge cataract in one eye as a result, I also have a optic nerve palsy that is causing me double vision which is also a result of pred, I also have cranial pressure which has caused optic nerve swelling which is also likely a result of pred. So besides the jitters, the huge emotional swings, etc... that I had while on it, I now have these lingering side effects that I am left to deal with and it sucks. I also have pain in my shoulder, elbow, arm and especially my hands that I am guessing feels somewhat like arthritis, not sure but I am guessing it is also another side effect.

Sure it has had a lot of benefit for me as well but be aware of the long-term side effects and get off it as soon as you can.